List of Indigestible Carbohydrates

by Jan Annigan

Sourdough bread contains indigestible resistant starch.

Carbohydrates in your diet supply you with energy and provide structure to many molecules in your cells. They also play a role in maintaining the health of your digestive tract and can even help lower your chances of developing certain diseases. Their difference in functions depends on whether your gastrointestinal system can digest the carbohydrate in question. Indigestible carbohydrates are the ones that impact your digestive health and your disease risk.

Resistant Starch

Resistant starch consists of the same type of starch molecules that can normally undergo digestion in your gut but instead remain resistant to the action of your digestive enzymes. Foods containing resistant starches include carbohydrate-rich vegetables and grains, such as potatoes or pasta, that have been allowed to cool after cooking. Raw cornstarch, sourdough bread and some unripe fruits also supply resistant starch to your diet. Because they don’t react to digestive enzymes, these carbohydrates don’t break down into simpler sugars for absorption. Rather, they travel to your large intestine undigested, where they mimic the effects of dietary fiber.

Soluble Fiber

The gums, pectins and mucilages found in barley, oats, beans and fruits are not digestible by your gastrointestinal tract because you lack the enzymes necessary to break them down. These soluble fibers take on a gummy consistency when they attract water while passing through your gut, and, as they do this, they slow down the transport of food through your gut. This reduced speed helps regulate how quickly your bloodstream absorbs nutrients like glucose and cholesterol, which may help reduce your likelihood of developing diabetes and heart disease or may help you manage these health issues if you already experience them. The soluble fiber you consume each day should be balanced with insoluble fiber in your diet to maximize the health benefits of both.

Insoluble Fiber

Similar to soluble fiber, your body does not make the enzymes required to digest insoluble fiber. These carbohydrates – from hemicellulose, cellulose and lignin in whole grains and vegetables – add bulk to the foods passing through your gut and stimulate the passage of waste products out of your large intestine. In this way, insoluble fiber helps regulate your bowel movements and can reduce instances of constipation and hemorrhoids. In addition, moving waste out of your bowels more quickly can lower your chances of digestive disease, such as colon cancer. The increased bulk associated with insoluble fiber can also help you feel satisfied and full from the foods you eat, which can assist with preventing overeating and weight gain.

Sugars

Some of the carbohydrates you eat are indigestible by the enzymes you produce but can be digested by bacteria that naturally live in your gut. In lactose intolerance, for example, your body produces insufficient enzymes to break down this milk sugar, and it can pass undigested into your large intestine. Other sugars, like raffinose in cabbage and broccoli, or sorbitol in apples and pears, can likewise pass through your gut undigested. When bacteria digest these sugars, they can produce gas that causes mild to severe abdominal distress. Reducing or eliminating these foods from your diet may be the only way to avoid intestinal problems if eating them causes you trouble.

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About the Author

A writer since 1985, Jan Annigan is published in "Plant Physiology," "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences," "Journal of Biological Chemistry" and on various websites. She holds a sports medicine and human performance certificate from the University of Washington, as well as a Bachelor of Science in animal sciences from Purdue University.

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